Stans No Tubes ZTR Crest 26" Wheels
For cross country riding and racing, there is no lightweight option available that comes anywhere near the price of the Stans Crest wheelset. And if you've ever had the pleasure of riding a lightweight wheelset, you'll appreciate how much of a difference it can make to the overall ride of the bike in terms of acceleration, braking and steering response. At 1420 grams, the ZTR Crest wheels blow away the competition in the weight stakes and are guaranteed to drop some substantial grams over the heavy stock hoops that often come on new bikes. Though when it comes to rotating mass like a wheel, dropping weight has a much bigger impact than dropping weight off a static item on your bike, such as the saddle or handlebar. With less mass at the wheel, you can accelerate faster, turn quicker and brake harder - all very important when riding singletrack. If you're a big rider or you're after a bombproof wheel for smashing drops on your 6" All Mountain bike, the Stans Flow or Arch wheels will be a better option, though for those that value a superlight wheel for riding XC trails; look no further.

NoTubes
Originally pioneering tubeless conversion kits and latex sealant to provide riders with the assurance they needed to experience tubeless technology, Stans NoTubes has continued to expand their product range into rims, complete wheels, tyres and wheel accessories, setting themselves apart from the rest with innovative design and new technology. With their main focus being tubeless technology, the ZTR wheels come ready to be setup with or without tubes depending on your preference, though the benefits of a tubeless setup are clear; lower rolling resistance, reduced punctures and the ability to run lower pressures for more traction. 

ZTR Crest RIms
A big reason as to the low overall wheel weight is the ZTR Crest rims. At just 340 grams per rim, they are almost 100 grams lighter than an equivalent Mavic or DT Swiss alloy rim, though the weight difference increases when you look at setting these options up tubeless. With the 5gm yellow tape and 23gm tubeless valves you have a ready-to-roll tubeless rim that you can use with UST, tubeless ready or non-tubeless tyres. The ZTR rims are manufactured from 6061 alloy to keep things stiff and light, and feature a substantially wider internal width than any other XC rim at 21mm. This allows for the beads of the tyre to sit further apart and provide a more stable profile to the tyre that resists rolling and deformation when running low pressures. By widening the tyre profile there is also better protection of the rim under impacts, so you end up with a stronger and lighter rim.

BST Technology
One of the biggest innovations to come from NoTubes is the Bead Socket Technology used on their ZTR rims that changes the way the tyre interfaces with the rim surface. Built around a substantially lower sidewall height, the ZTR Crest rim eliminates the traditional bead hook that has featured on bicycle wheels for many years. The NoTubes designers were able to this as they created a much more secure interface for the tyres bead to lock into the rim, creating a tighter seal and the ability to run lower pressures with dramatically less chance of the tyre rolling under the bead hook. Aside from reducing rim weight, the BST system makes for an excellent tubeless system and allows you to setup the ZTR rim with any tyre as a tubeless setup. In our experience, we have found UST and Tubeless Ready tyres to be the best pairing with NoTubes rims when setting them up without tubes, though some riders have had luck converting standard tyres to tubeless for a superlight rim/tyre combo.

The Build
All of the Stans NoTubes factory wheels come as a complete wheel that is handbuilt to the correct tension with DT Swiss spokes in a traditional 3-cross lacing pattern. The use of standard spokes allows for easy replacement and long term durability, as well as the ability for the wheels to be worked on by any competent mechanic. The Crest wheels get the lightweight DT Swiss Revolution spokes and alloy nipples to keep weight down and stiffness high. The rims are laced to a ZTR hubset that uses cartridge bearings front & rear for smooth rolling and ongoing durability even when used in crappy conditions. The freehub has 30 points of engagement and is super-simple to pull apart and service should you need to clean out any contaminants that have worked their way in. Just like the spokes, the hub internals are readily available and easy to replace should you have any troubles down the line.

The Stans Crest Wheelset features:

• ZTR Crest 26" rims
• Rim material: 6061 Aluminum Alloy
• Internal rim width: 21mm
• External rim width: 24.4mm
• Rim depth: 15.8mm
• BST (Bead Socket Technology) for tubeless compatibility
• 3.30 Front hub with sealed cartridge bearings; 9mm quick release or QR15 option
• 3.30 Rear hub with 30pt engagement freehub and sealed cartridge bearings; 135mm QR
• Fits 8/9/10 speed cassettes
• 6-Bolt rotor mounting
• DT Swiss Revolution spokes; 2.0/1.5/2.0
• Silver Alloy spoke nipples
• 32 spokes per wheel with standard 3-cross lacing pattern
• Weight: 1420 grams
• Rider weight limit: 86kg (190lbs)
• Includes Yellow rim tape and Tubeless valves

Stans NoTubes are the original innovators when it comes to tubeless technology